Apple News 3 Days

Last updated: June 25, 2026, 8:30 PM ET

Apple Hardware & Pricing Shake-Up

Apple has implemented a significant round of price increases across a broad spectrum of its hardware, impacting Macs, iPads, Apple TV, Home Pods, and the Vision Pro confirmed by the company. The price hikes, which follow a temporary outage of Apple's online store for unspecified "changes" Apple Store was down, are attributed by CEO Tim Cook to rising component costs, particularly for RAM Apple working tirelessly. Notably, the MacBook Neo saw its price jump from $599 to $699 MacBook Neo now starts at $699, a move that has drawn particular criticism most surprising Apple price increase. While iPhones, Apple Watches, Air Pods, and Air Tags escaped these increases iPhone, Apple Watch & AirPods escape, the widespread nature of the hikes has led to a sharp decline in Apple's stock, marking its worst day in over a year Apple's stock has worst day. Despite the price adjustments, some retailers like Amazon are still offering deals, allowing consumers to purchase iPads and Macs at pre-hike prices during Prime Day Beat Apple's Price Hike. Apple's refurbished store has also seen price adjustments following the new product hikes Apple raises refurbished prices.

Apple Silicon Evolution and Product Rumors

Apple is reportedly shifting its silicon strategy, with rumors suggesting a skip of the M6 Pro and Max chips in favor of new, AI-focused M7 chips for 2027 Macs skip M6 Pro, Max chips. This change aims to accelerate the debut of chips designed for artificial intelligence workloads AI-focused M7 chips. In parallel, an updated base model 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M6 chip could launch as soon as this year. Further down the line, a potential M5 Ultra Mac Studio is slated for release in 2026, possibly supporting up to 768GB of RAM M5 Ultra Mac Studio could launch. Meanwhile, reports indicate that OLED panel mass production has begun for upcoming products, including an OLED iPad mini and an OLED MacBook Pro, with Samsung and LG expected to supply panels for Apple's 2026 lineup OLED panel mass production. Speculation also continues regarding a foldable iPhone, with rumors of hinge issues being resolved and production slated to begin in July for a potential fall release Foldable iPhone 'Ultra' set for production.

Software Updates and Feature Rollouts

Apple is pushing forward with software updates across its ecosystem. Developers can now access the second beta of watch OS 27 for the Apple Watch Ultra, bringing access to Siri AI and other improvements. iOS 27 beta 2 has also been released, detailing changes within the Camera app, including a new 'Siri' mode iOS 27 Camera app has new mode, and enhancements to the Notes app with features appreciated by power users Apple Notes adds power user feature. The Wallet app in iOS 27 is also receiving significant upgrades, aiming to further position the iPhone as a physical wallet replacement iOS 27 Wallet app gets 7 new features. Within the messaging suite, WhatsApp is finally rolling out channel update search to iPhone users, a feature that arrived on Android over a year ago WhatsApp channels search on iPhone. Siri AI in iOS 27 is also being refined, with new guidelines in beta 2 instructing it to clearly refuse requests to summarize URLs Siri AI refuse to summarize URLs.

Market Share and App Store Dynamics

A report from Counterpoint Research predicts Apple will achieve record market share in three out of four major product categories this year record market share across categories. This projected growth comes amidst ongoing scrutiny of Apple's App Store policies. Russian authorities are demanding an explanation from Apple regarding the removal of apps developed by state-controlled tech company VK from the U.S. App Store Russia wants to know why. Concurrently, a group of 48 Chinese developers have filed an antitrust complaint with China's market regulator, citing concerns over allegedly high App Store fees and restrictive distribution rules Chinese developers file antitrust complaint.

Prime Day Deals and Retail Activity

As Amazon's Prime Day sales continue, numerous deals on Apple products are available, offering significant discounts on Macs, iPads, and accessories Prime Day Apple deals. Consumers can find savings on MacBook Air and Pro models, with discounts reaching up to $450 on some configurations Amazon's MacBook Air deal. Air Pods Pro 3 and Air Pods Max 2 are also seeing substantial price drops, with some deals selling out quickly AirPods Max 2 at $399. Apple's annual Back to School promotion is also expected to begin soon, potentially offering students a way to offset the recent price increases on Macs and iPads Back to School promotion.

Other Development

In other news, Apple is rumored to be working on a new wearable product, an 'iRing' Apple has new ‘iRing’ wearable. The company has also acquired the Swift Package Index, a community-run search engine for Swift packages, with plans to keep it open source Swift Package Index joins Apple. Apple's retail store in Ann Arbor, Michigan, is set to relocate to a larger space within the Briarwood Mall Apple Store in Ann Arbor moving.